'Ripped Representative' Schock Is Poster Boy for Health Mag

Washington’s hunkiest congressman, Republican Aaron Schock, has become a cover model — making the front of Men’s Health magazine. The Illinois congressman — or “The Ripped Representative” as the magazine terms him — poses on the cover with an open shirt and with his blue tie undone.

And inside, Schock enthuses about a fitness regime that has to start by 6:30 a.m. “It’s got to happen early or it's not going to happen,” says Schock, who is in his second term on Capitol Hill but still is only 29.

Schock, the first congressman to be born in the 1980s, tells Men’s Health that his youth helps focus his mind, as most representatives now in their 60s or older won’t be around to suffer the consequences of their policies. That is why he concentrates his efforts on issues such as the budget deficit, health care costs, energy, the environment, and obesity.

"One of my favorite quotes is from Ben Franklin, who said, 'A good example is the best sermon,' " Schock told the magazine. "If you want to start talking about healthy lifestyles and staying in shape, then you yourself should do your best to try to be a model, an example to people you're trying to convince to do the same."

He first decided to bulk up while in college as a means to lose weight. "Exercise is more important than diet for me because it's a twofer. It keeps me in good physical shape, and it relieves stress. And when you're a representative of the public, there's never a shortage of things to do."

Schock praised first lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign to reduce childhood obesity. "She and I come from the same state, Illinois, which is number four in the nation for obese children. One out of five Illinois children are considered obese. Not overweight, obese. And two-thirds of Americans are either overweight or obese. When people hear that, they're shocked, and rightfully so."